2022 Yamaha Revstar Element RSE20 | A classy Neon Yellow riff machine for under $500! Review & Demo
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- čas přidán 28. 07. 2024
- This is the 2022 Yamaha Revstar Element RSE20 in Neon Yellow!
Yamaha has revamped its Revstar lineup for 2022, and there are now three tiers of the guitar available, with the Element model being the most affordable and stripped back of the bunch: it comes in at a wallet-friendly $499/479.
Revstar RSE20 at Thomann: bit.ly/RevstarElementNeonYellow
At Sweetwater: sweetwater.sjv.io/21JNnA
The Revstar Element’s specs just scream rock and roll - and the Neon Yellow finish on this one certainly adds to the vibe! Under that eye-catching colorway, we have a chambered mahogany body, and the neck is mahogany too. The 24.75” scale length neck is an almost chunky C shape, and we have 22 jumbo frets on the rosewood fingerboard, which has a 12” radius.
All the hardware is Yamaha’s own, from the tuners and the bridge to the pair of Yamaha VH3 humbucking pickups. There’s a twist to the pickups, too: pull up the tone pot to activate the Dry Switch, which is a high pass filter. The Dry Switch filters out some of the booming low-end you often get from humbuckers, delivering more sparkly tones with added clarity. It’s like a coil split in a way, but without the hum and the associated volume drop.
But how does the guitar sound, and does the Element perform above its budget, sub $500 price tag? We’re about to find out! In this video, I try the Revstar in as many different musical styles as I can, from country, folk and indie, to pop, rock, punk, metal and more - and we test out that Dry Switch as much as we can too.
Here are some links to the various playing samples and info bits:
00:00 Hello!
00:10 Introduction to the Yamaha Revstar Element
01:04 Specs and info
03:12 Today’s rig and plan
Clean Sounds
04:10 Clean tone reference chords on all pickups/Dry Switch options
04:43 Poppy barre chords
04:59 Blues progression
05:11 Ringing open indie pop chords
05:24 Country strummed chords
05:43 Country lead sound
05:51 Country ballad arpeggios
06:04 Funky rhythm chords
06:18 Indie pop picked arpeggios
06:37 Indie rock strummed chords
06:51 Cowboy chords with tone control test
07:54 Strummed folk pop chords
Crunch Sounds (Crunch Channel on amp)
08:12 Groovy classic rock riff
08:37 AC/DC inspired classic rock riff
08:55 Airbourne inspired classic rock riff
09:05 Greta Van Fleet inspired rock riff
09:18 Hendrix inspired classic rock riff
Crunch Sounds (Clean Channel w/Greer Lightspeed)
09:34 Fat indie rhythm chords
09:50 Indie rock octave chords
10:14 Indie rock barre chords
10:39 Volume control roll-off test
11:23 Indie octave chords riff
11:51 Edgy indie rock chords
12:05 Garage rock riff
Lead Channel Sounds
12:21 Classic hard rock riff
12:38 Hard rock riff
12:54 Classic hard rock rhythm sound
13:20 Glam rock riff
13:33 Chunky alternative rock chords
13:57 Alt rock riff
14:11 Pop punk riff
14:24 Pop punk melodic lead riff
14:40 Green Day inspired punk rock riff
14:54 Punk rock power chords
15:08 Less Than Jake inspired punk rock riff
15:19 Progressive rock riff (Drop D tuning)
15:35 Modern rock palm-muted power chords (Drop D)
16:00 Rage Against The Machine inspired groovy riff (Drop D)
Clean Channel w/Revv G3 Distortion Pedal (all in Drop D)
16:15 Metal chugging riff
16:31 Mastodon inspired metal riff with country twang
16:43 Thrash metal riff
16:52 Hardcore chug test
17:03 Rammstein inspired industrial metal riff
17:16 Lead sounds
17:28 Classic heavy metal/sludge riff
18:01 My thoughts and the Revstar’s unexpected versatility
19:01 First impressions out of the box
19:42 Weight and unplugged sounds
20:26 Build quality and hardware
21:43 Playability and neck
22:04 Sounds and the Dry Switch
24:36 Who is the Revstar aimed at, and what competition is out there?
26:15 The Revstar Standard and Professional models
27:15 My conclusions on the Revstar Element
28:47 Thanks and goodbye
More info on the Revstar Standard and Professional models - and more chambered body pics - are here:
yamaha.io/3JIjkwn
My setup was as follows: I ran the Revstar into my Hughes & Kettner Black Spirit 200 head, also using my Greer Lightspeed for the overdrive and my Revv G3 for the heavy distortion sounds. The amp went from the Red Box DI straight into my Focusrite Scarlett 2i4, which went into Logic Pro X. That's it. No post-processing on the sounds was done.
Here’s some links to those bits of gear:
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H&K Black Spirit 200 head: bit.ly/HKBS200rwm
Greer Lightspeed: bit.ly/GreerLightspeedRWM
Revv G3: bit.ly/RevvG3RWM
Focusrite 4i4: bit.ly/Scarlett414RWM
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Enjoy!
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Backing music from the CZcams Audio Library: Duck In The Alley - TrackTribe.
#YamahaRevstar #Revstar #YamahaGuitar #YamahaGuitars
Note: certain links in the description are affiliate links. If you click said links and purchase anything as a result, I will receive a small commission. This doesn’t cost you anything extra, but it does help to support the channel. So, if you do that, thank you very much! - Hudba
And here's the timestamps for you people on phones:
00:00 Hello!
00:13 Introduction to the Yamaha Revstar Element
01:04 Specs and info
03:12 Today’s rig and plan
04:10 Clean Sounds
08:12 Classic rock sounds
09:34 Indie rock sounds
12:21 Heavy overdrive sounds
16:15 Metal sounds
18:01 My thoughts and the Revstar’s unexpected versatility
19:01 First impressions out of the box
19:42 Weight and unplugged sounds
20:26 Build quality and hardware
21:43 Playability and neck
22:04 Sounds and the Dry Switch
24:36 Who is the Revstar aimed at, and what competition is out there?
26:15 The Revstar Standard and Professional models
27:15 My conclusions on the Revstar Element
28:47 Thanks and goodbye
Do you think that the revstar RSE20 can cover jazz?
@@jazzsounds8159 I think it can, yes, although there are probably better guitars out there for that kind of music. Actually, the Standard and Professional Revstars might be better suited to jazz than the Element models because they have better pickups with more advanced switching options. On the Andertons demo the Yamaha rep did some fairly nice jazzy tones with the Standard model...
By far the best review of this guitar, got 10 minutes in and have purchased one.
Oh wow, thanks a lot! Happy new guitar day to you, and I hope you end up loving yours as well 😎
The best review I have listened for this new revstar guitars! Great complete review!
Thanks Victor, I'm really happy you enjoyed it! I tried to show this guitar from all its (Neon Yellow!) sides...
Great demo..Great playing. You're right. The Revstar definitely has it's own vibe..
Thanks, glad you enjoyed the video! And yes, more people should give the Revstar a try... it's a bit of a hidden gem right now and definitely it's own thing that you can have as a great alternative to a Strat, Les Paul, Tele, 335, etc.
Rich just wanted to say you’re one of my favorite Guitar reviews on CZcams 🎸🤟😎☮️
Thanks so much John, it really makes my day to get comments like that! I'm glad you discovered my little channel and are enjoying the videos so far... plenty more to come too
😊 Rock on!
Great review as always...Love Yamaha guitars there value for money is outstanding...Yet another great guitar on my want list...Thank you for sharing....
Thanks Mark, I have to agree! Sometimes Yamahas fly under the radar a bit (especially Pacificas) but every single one I've ever played has been fantastic - including this Revstar. I bet your want list is pretty long at this point, just like mine 😉 I need the Swift Blue version of this guitar!
Stellar review! Appreciate hearing the great and versatile tones you get in the demo section, and you analysis and comments about the guitar. Do note, though, that the Professional version appears to be priced quite a bit higher than I believe your 1200 Euro comments in the video indicate. Might be worth tacking on a note about that, but, great job!
Thanks, glad you enjoyed it! I try to cover as much as I can in these videos. And yes, I checked the prices out and the Professional ones are actually more like €1,899 or $2,000... so I under priced them by quite a bit. Makes more sense now, based on what they actually are and being built in Japan and all. I'll see if I can add a note in the video and if not put it in the description. Thanks for the spot!
Great guitar, great sound, great color !!!!!!
Agreed on all of those points! Rock on and thanks for watching :)
I want that yellow one so bad.
It's such a great guitar! I want it in blue though.
Phenomenal! Great job as always. Love Yamaha and revstars. Also like that the new ones do not seem to have as thick necks as many of the old ones had. Got a hot merlot standard on my way :). The focus switch on them seems awesome! Hope Yamaha sends you one!
Thanks Jens! Great choice on the Hot Merlot too, that is one elegant looking beast, and I think you'll love it! Word on the street is the Standards are best value for money all things considered. I do also think the neck will be more to your liking (if the Standard neck is anything like the Element one!) and that Focus switch sounds great in all the demos I've seen. Let me know how it is once you've played it in a bit! And yes, I would love it if there was a Swift Blue Standard for me to try at some point!
@@RichWordsMusic I will :). Keep up the good work! Nice to see you getting more subscribers. It's well deserved!
@@jensnilsson1507 Thanks a lot! Yeah, the sub count is slowly but surely creeping up :) Next stop 3000!
Hey.. Mostly Thanks to You, last day i bought the Swift blu element.. I played it just for a while and it seemed to sound amazing!! It's very comfortable, not light as i expected(just like You.. 😄) and the neck and fretboard feel great.. If i was rich, i would have bought this fluo yellow model too, that is super cool!! But the blue one is simply Gorgeous!! 😍.. Very good review as usual.. Thanks and cheers!!
Hey there! Oh wow, congratulations - Swift Blue is the color I would want the most! I am really happy to hear that you are enjoying yours... happy new guitar day! Glad you enjoyed the video, and yes, maybe one day you can get more Revstars ;) Yamaha just sent me a Standard model for a video, so I'll release that soon :) Rock on!
Well I just love everything about that guitar.
I think I have to get the blue one :)
@@RichWordsMusic I need to research the "Dry Switch" idea...I'm intrigued.
@@LucasFowler It's really clever (well, the idea of using a high pass filter for this is) and sounds great. On the more expensive Standard models there's a transformer in the control cavity that they use to boost the signal with the Focus switch that model has - pretty innovative stuff. Phil McKnight explains it better than me: czcams.com/video/rNK5Rm9INd8/video.html
Mahogany guitars always sound the best imo…RevStars are absolutely killer…bought one 3 yrs ago, and just ordered the standard with P90s, can’t wait
Awesome, happy new guitar day for when you get it! I would love to try the Standard next... if it's like a higher quality version of the Element it will be fantastic! And I bet those P90s are great. I hear you on the mahogany thing too...
Great review and demo, I have been Eyng this guitar since it came out and I’m a lefty and they make two colors in left handed versions as well as the Standard.
Thanks, glad you enjoyed it! Yes, these are excellent guitars indeed, and I thoroughly recommend you try one if you get the chance. There's nothing out there that beats them for this price, I don't think. Great to hear that Yamaha are looking after lefties in that regard too 👍
I just became a subscriber. What an excellent video! Looking forward to more on your channel. AA+
Thanks so much Gene, I'm happy you decided to subscribe! Plenty more videos like this one planned - I hope you enjoy them :)
I'M GETTING IT!
Go for it, hope you like it as much as I like this one!
I just saw the black version of this guitar and I'm gasing so hard... It looks good, it sounds good and it seems like it has the neck profile I like.
It's classy in black, isn't it. For me, of course, I'd go for the blue! Burt what a cool guitar and I think you'd love it. It has the Dry Switch, so it's super flexible, but maybe you could also consider the Standard one which has a 5-way switch plus a Focus switch for each position? I would love to try that one next 😊 The neck on these is super comfy, and also satin and a rosewood board - very high scores from me all round!
I have one, and it's a great guitar.
@@RichWordsMusic Your comprehensive review basically sold me on this guitar. The tones it can make are fantastic, and it plays like a dream.
@@sopwithcamelus Wow, thanks a lot! I'm really happy I helped you make a decision.. but even happier that the guitar has lived up to your expectations too! These Revstars are such underrated gems, though... I believe every guitarist should give them a try at least once :) Happy new guitar day and rock on!
Great video! Hope you do get to review a Standard as that's the price point I'm looking at. It would be my most expensive guitar but it seems the sweet spot with the steel frets, better electronics, and carbon fibre (and hey, a gig bag)
Thanks, glad you enjoyed it! Yes, I really hope I can get a Standard one in too. They do seem to be the best bang for the buck overall. It would be my most expensive new guitar too, but if the Element is anything to go by it'll be worth it!
The only Yamaha stringed instrument I own is a Yamaha 5 string bass (a white trbx505) and it is..simply *awesome* (and it looks really amazing too!) The Revstars have been on my radar for a good while, kinda thanx to Chris Buck, and the reviews lately of the new lineup does not help one bit with my GAS! You (as always) kicked it out of the park with your review. 🤘 (a p90 std in my future perhaps?.. hmm)
Yep, Yamaha are just a solid maker of great stuff - I feel they don't really get a fair rep compared to some other brands for that! Funny, but Chris Buck is always the name I think of too when it comes to Revstars... for a while I think he was pretty much the main man on CZcams who was playing them consistently. I always liked them but this new range has really stepped things up, and I would love to try a Standard model too... possibly also the P90 version! In blue, of course ;) You need to go try one of these out if you can, and let me know what you think! The GAS is strong...
@@RichWordsMusic The blue one is the one for me too (i only have one blue guitar, the Ferris blue fat ltd ;) but this could be my second, no doubt. (#gottasellacouplefirstthough) (workin' on that)
@@pstraums Yep, the blue is absolutely lovely. Would be such an inspiring guitar to have around, because I'd always want to pick it up and play it!
Same with me... selling is hard though, isn't it?! I always struggle with that. We only buy good stuff, don't we, so it's hard to let go 😉 Hope you manage to get one soon!
I have one in the surf blue. The only thing I don't like it is the 3 way slider switch. Being a Les Paul player I just prefer the 3 way toggle.
I know what you mean - it just takes some getting used to. Fantastic guitars, though, once you do... and you 100% picked the best color!
The sulphur super guitar!
All the Revstars have been seriously good instruments! A BASS version would be interesting!
For less than $500, it's a serious guitar! \m/
Hell yeah, they're top notch stuff. I've tried a couple of Yamaha's other basses and they're really good... a Revstar bass would be a great idea!
Revstar bass is Yamaha BB
@@DikiBolz OK.
Excellent review, as usual Rich. I think I'll get one of them. I'm going for the next stage up and with P90s. One of the things I find slightly odd about many guitar reviews, not especially yours, the emphasis on the fret ends... how poor or fantastically wonderful they are. When I play my left thumb is glued to the back of the neck, my fingers on the front of the neck and my palm never touches the fret ends, ever. So I don't really care about smooth or sharp frets, as I never touch the things! Am I odd? Am I supposed to touch the edges all the time when I'm playing?
Thanks Michael! The Standard model is apparently the best value of the three new Revstars (I haven't played one, but would love to) and comes with a decent gig bag - combined with the improved specs it should be a great guitar, and you know I love my P90s too! Please let me know your impressions if you do get one.
And yes, I have also noticed that some people seem a little fixated on fret ends. For me it suffices to say "the frets are nice and smooth" or similar ;) I don't think you're odd at all in wondering what the fuss is about though! I assume it's because some players often have their thumb over the fretboard too, and when they slide up and down the board there's the danger of nicking (or even cutting) yourself on a very rough fret end. I feel the fret ends occasionally when I do that while playing barre chords, but it's nothing significant. These days I find it's increasingly rare to come across a guitar with fret ends that are that bad, although I have experienced a few in the past. Nothing worth bothering about too much - and if your frets aren't in good shape, a tech can sort them out for you no problem :)
Basically sound like the same guitar, with one exception: the Epi split coils in the middle position. It’s the outlier sound here, and I’d like it more if it weren’t so weak.
I have to admit I was actually really surprised at how similar they sounded for some of the stuff - and that was without tweaking a single amp or pedal setting. The Dry Switch and the coil splits did change things a lot, though, and I guess it's down to personal taste what each person prefers. I love the twang from the Epi on the bridge 'single coil' but never use that split middle position setting, whereas I actually use the Revstar's Dry Switch most of the time as it gives some lovely extra clarity without actually thinning out the sound too much or reducing the volume.
I've got a set of neon yellow JB and '59's to go into one of these. been looking for a guitar to put these Duncan's into. lol
Ha ha, oh man, that would be one classy guitar! All neon yellow. Pics when it's done please! I wonder if you could get someone to spray the fretboard for you too?!
Did you CATCH the pidgeon?
And here I am waiting until August for my lefty RSS20L in Swift Blue! Quick question: is the hardware chrome or nickel? I have a Vintage V100 I recently returned to the store but ordered new Gotoh hardware with the idea of modding it as usual but since it's gone back, now I have these extra pieces laying around but the finish is nickel, haha!
Oof, that's a long time to wait! How frustrating. You chose the best color too :) But hey, what a great job Yamaha have done with left-handed models in this range. I'm pretty sure the hardware is chrome, sadly. Some of the older Revstars had nickel hardware I believe, so maybe there's differences in the new range too?
Sounds like less muddy , angry LP. Been gassing to get one of the standards from Thomann.
If this one is so good... I guess standard will feel, sound and play even better.
Most YT videos with revstars suck, to be honest. They sound out of tune, muddy, harsh etc.
I like everything about them but the sounds I have listened were not great , but this one was spot on.
I'd like to get less heavy Les Paul tone type guitar. Do you think this one could do that?
Tnx Rich!
See you on the 100th episode of Academy of tone!
Well, I'm happy you enjoyed my riffs, thank you :) Yes, this guitar kind of is like that (a less chunky LP!), and I think you might really like these if that's what you're looking for. I'm in exactly the same position as you: I feel like this Element guitar is great, but for just a few hundred more you get the Standard, and that may be significantly better. I need to try a Standard for sure! The Swift Blue is a thing of beauty.
Yay, see you next Wednesday! It's going to be fun - we have Thomas, Kai and me on together for once :)
Have you played one of the older revstar? I’ve been wondering how the body size compare to the older models
I have, a very long time ago. These new ones are slightly bigger... I had the suspicion when I got this one out the box, and then heard it confirmed by the Yamaha rep in the Andertons video here (at 4:45, should be in the link though) - it's because of the chambering, interestingly: czcams.com/video/ocJnLPqfL_Y/video.html
In the price range of the revstar is also the Gretsch Electromatic Jet Family. The Gretsch Jet is maybe not so versatile, but I wonder If the build quality is similar...
Do you See a possibility in the Future, to get a Hand on a Gretsch?
That's a great call. I actually tried a Gretsch Electromatic baritone a few weeks ago (the G5260T model) and it was lovely! Of course, being a baritone it has a much different feel overall, but I can totally imagine the standard guitar versions are on a par with the Revstar and the Epi as well. Definitely one to think about... I think the Filtertron pickups are actually pretty versatile, but you never know until you try! I'm not sure where I could source such a Gretsch, but I will see what I can do! Cheers :)
@@RichWordsMusic With the Gretsch i find it quite difficult to Unserstand, which to choose, because they have such a big range of Humbuckers: Broadtrons in the Streamliner Series, Mini-Humbuckers in the Bariton (also in older Jet Series), Blacktop-Filtertrons in the Electromatic Jets and Classic, as Well as HiLo-Filtertrons in the Regular Series. And now there are even P90 equipped Semi-Hollow Guitars in the Streamliner Series.🤯
@@andiebetjemann7920 Yes, since I wrote my last comment to you I've been looking at some Gretsch guitars. It's basically impossible to make selections without playing them I guess! So I suppose we both need to plan to go to a big Gretsch dealer in the near future. Don't think there's any really close to me...
Great review! How would you compare neck profile, feel and width of the revstar to the Hb aeolus ?
Thanks, glad you enjoyed this one! The neck on the Revstar is a tiny bit chunkier than the Aeolus, I feel. They are both satin finished, so really comfy to play - the Aeolus's plain roasted maple might be a tiny bit smoother overall, but it's very close. Feel and quality-wise, I also think they're very similar, but the fret ends on the Revstar are a little more rounded and smoother, which I prefer! I hope this helps :)
@@RichWordsMusic Really, wow, i know they thinned out the neck on the newer revstars so i was curious and now i have to try one ! Thanks man, love the channel!
@@karlozmpr Yes, and I've seen a few other comments on other Revstar videos where people are loving the new necks compared to the older ones... try one when you can and I think you'll love it! And thanks for enjoying my channel too, makes me really happy to get messages like that 😊
@@karlozmpr P.S. Let me know once you try one of these... would love to hear what you think of it... and if you buy it 😉
@@RichWordsMusic I will try them as soon as they are available in stores
👍🏻👍🏻
Thanks for watching my good man!
I'm not sure I can get on board with that colour on anything besides a Kramer or Charvel! Would love to try a Revstar though, especially a P90 model.
Ha ha, I know what you mean! I had to wear sunglasses for the first few minutes after I got it out of the box ;) And of course I'd prefer the Swift Blue if it was available. I'd also love to try the P90 version... hopefully soon! I am really tempted to get one of these - maybe the Element, or maybe even the Standard. I have GAS!
@@RichWordsMusic Haha, at least you've turned your GAS into a useful channel rather than storage cupboards of remorse!
@@peterklein5861 Hmm, it does make sense if you put it that way! And I think it also means I should purchase more guitars and gear whenever I can. I'm doing the guitar community a favor, or something 😉
Can it cover jazz?
Just answered down there, but popping this here in case anyone else wants to see it: I think it can, yes, although there are probably better guitars out there for that kind of music. Actually, the Standard and Professional Revstars might be better suited to jazz than the Element models because they have better pickups with more advanced switching options. On the Andertons demo the Yamaha rep did some fairly nice jazzy tones with the Standard model...
It may not look it but it’s made to MetaaaaaaaaaL, and other stuff.
It sure is! You'd be visible from Earth with the naked eye if you started rocking this one out up there...
How many times I got to tell you Mr. Morgan we do not go outside here🤣
Less of course we’re cleaning up discarded rocket bodys
@@PooNinja Sorry sir! I keep forgetting.
Thank you for playing several genres. I am fan of blues but I am so tired of hearing blues licks on guitar gear demos, to a certain point it's like the other gear demos cannot do anything else.
No worries! I always try to play as many different styles as I can in all of my videos - not everyone wants to hear those same old blues licks, as you and I both know ;) Hopefully there's something for just about everyone in my videos. Thanks for watching!
it hurts my eyes.
Ha, it hurt mine too when I opened the box! But after a few minutes, weirdly, I started liking it. Never thought I would in a million years. I'd still have a blue one if I had the choice though ;)